Our Lord Jesus

(This post is the second in a short series of four posts on Hebrews 13:20-21. All posts in this series are adaptations from Emily's session at the women's event "Equipped to Serve" on February 18, 2023 in Newport, TN.)

"Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen" (Hebrews 13:20-21).

The writer of Hebrews ends his letter with an amazingly beautiful prayer filled with a depth of theology that is critical to understand if we want to live a life of service and be equipped to serve. The author orders his words in such a way that prioritizes the one who is doing the equipping. The focus is not on the equipped or on the method of equipping but rather on the Equipper. We must pause and behold the beauty and the glory of the one who equips us in order to be properly equipped to serve. This prayer brings to light one title for God and two titles for Jesus that are important for us to remember as we serve in any form of ministry: the God of peace, our Lord Jesus, and the great shepherd of the sheep. This second post of the series will focus on the second title, our Lord Jesus.

The title “Lord Jesus” is mentioned over one hundred times in the New Testament. We might be tempted to skim over this title because it’s so common in Christian language, but this title is rich in meaning. For Jesus to be our Lord, it means that he is our master. It’s a term of respect for him, and it’s an acknowledgment that we are his servants. It is a great privilege that we get to serve our Lord Jesus because he is a loving and merciful master.

What exactly does it mean to serve the Lord Jesus? There are several ways to answer this question. One way is to follow the two greatest commandments: love God and love people. Another way is to do what he said to do in the Great Commission by going out and making disciples and baptizing and teaching them all that he has commanded. Yet another way is to commit to daily reading the Scriptures and learning truth and living out the truth and sharing the truth.

Submission isn’t always easy - even when we know our Lord is loving and merciful. There are so many things that we would often rather do than study the Bible and live out what it says, and there are times when the master’s plans for how he wants us to serve don’t line up with what we want to do.

Submission isn’t always easy - even when we know our Lord is loving and merciful. There are so many things that we would often rather do than study the Bible and live out what it says, and there are times when the master’s plans for how he wants us to serve don’t line up with what we want to do. Just this past year, I was in the middle of a transition. I had been hired to coach track and field, and due to various family circumstances, I wasn’t looking for a full-time job. I wanted to coach and do some speaking and writing on the side. My prayer was that God would open opportunities for me to speak and write. Not long after that, I received a job offer for a job for which I had not applied. The school where I was coaching wanted me to be a high school science teacher. I have a background in science, but never once had I considered being a teacher. I remember thinking, God, this isn’t what I asked for. All I want to do is coach, speak, and write. I accepted the job but went into it scared to death and feeling very unequipped. Looking back, I am so thankful I said yes. I now realize that God didn’t ignore my prayer request. I had asked for opportunities to speak, and he gave me 100 students to speak to every single day. I had asked for opportunities to write, and he has me writing lesson plans every single day that show his glory through science. Saying yes to this plan that wasn’t anything close to my plan opened up an opportunity for ministry that I’ve never had, and he’s been faithful to equip me all along the way.

Our Lord Jesus, our master, knows where we need to serve, and he knows how to equip us. We must surrender to his plan and let him take the lead. Being a faithful servant who is equipped to serve starts with submitting to the authority of our Lord Jesus.